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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26197987">mantra</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/roseweasley394/pseuds/roseweasley394'>roseweasley394</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Moments Like These [26]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Blood and Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Mild Blood</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:01:24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,220</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26197987</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/roseweasley394/pseuds/roseweasley394</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>'And that’s when it happened. Just thinking about all of it, the hitting and the screaming and the wands being drawn so quickly made Scorpius’s blood boil. . . he thought of Rose and how terrified she’d looked. She was probably furious with him. It was almost enough to make him feel guilty, not quite though.'</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Scorpius Malfoy/Rose Weasley</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Moments Like These [26]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1780003</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>mantra</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>As Scorpius Malfoy sat in the office of Hogwarts’s headmistress, he couldn’t stop the overwhelming, impending sense of doom that had begun to blossom in his chest. He was angry, angrier than he could ever remember being. His heart was pounding against his ribs, his hands were still shaking, and all he wanted was a hot shower and to talk to his girlfriend. But he knew what was coming, knew that he needed to at least try and keep up the pretense of being alright; he owed that much to Rose. Upon glancing down to see his knee jumping irritably, he winced at the sight of his bloodied knuckles. He really had fucked up.</p>
<p>In mere weeks he would reach his final day at Hogwarts. He was to graduate, move into a dingy flat with his girlfriend, and start training at St. Mungo’s. Freedom was so close that he could almost taste it. But of course, he first needed to complete his N.E.W.Ts, which were adding more stress to his life than he thought possible because, on top of studying, he and Rose had taken to bickering like they had in second year. It was never over anything of importance, they were both under copious amounts of pressure which resulted in short tempers and unyielding impatience.</p>
<p>He thought of earlier in the evening when things had been simpler in comparison. He and Rose had gotten into it worse than usual after he’d taken the liberty of writing both of their timetables. Apparently this had been the wrong thing to do; he just didn’t know why.</p>
<p>“I don’t need you to do things for me!” Rose huffed, ripping the sheets of parchment from his hands.</p>
<p>“Am I suddenly not allowed to try and help my girlfriend?” He asked incredulously.</p>
<p>He looked around the empty corridor quickly to make sure that nobody was listening in on them. It was bad enough that they were having another row; the last thing he needed was for everyone to know about it.</p>
<p>“No, don’t be ridiculous,” Rose snapped. “I’m trying to tell you that I’m perfectly capable of doing my own work.”</p>
<p>“Just like I’m more than capable of writing my own potions essay?”</p>
<p>Her eyes widened in surprise but she quickly crossed her arms stubbornly, jutting her chin out in defiance. “I only wrote it because you were tired and you needed sleep!”</p>
<p>“And I only wrote your timetable because you were running late to breakfast and you already had two more to write,” he said, referring to their other friends, Albus Potter and Alice Longbottom.</p>
<p>At his words Rose’s face immediately crumpled and to his horror, tears began to pour down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Scorpius,” she said hurdling herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck. He reciprocated and wrapped his arms around her back squeezing tightly as her tiny form shook with sobs. Merlin, girls were confusing.</p>
<p>“Hey,” he said quietly while rubbing placating circles on her back, “it’s okay.”</p>
<p>She leaned back slightly to look up at him through watery eyes. “No, it’s not. I was being horrible to you. Thank you for making my timetable, I really do appreciate it,” she said, reaching up to stroke her fingers on the underside of his jaw.</p>
<p>He closed his eyes and shook his head smiling slightly. Even after having been with Rose for a year and a half, she still baffled him daily. But if he’d learned anything from being around her family, it was that Weasley’s would always be a bit confusing.</p>
<p>“You’re clearly exhausted. Maybe you should go back to the tower to sleep,” he suggested lightly.</p>
<p>“But I’m supposed to meet with Professor McGonagall to go over detention slips,” she said quickly.</p>
<p>“Rose, I’m Head Boy. I wrote the slips right along with you and I can guarantee that I’ll be able to talk to McGonagall about them just the same as you. Now come on, I’ll walk you back to the common room,” he said, placing a hand on her lower back to guide her. She obliged and leaned her head against his chest thinking about how nice it felt to be taken care of.</p>
<p>And that’s when it happened. Just thinking about all of it, the hitting and the screaming and the wands being drawn so quickly made Scorpius’s blood boil. He didn’t even want to think about what McGonagall would say to him when she finally arrived. Waiting in her office, the muscle in his jaw jumping irritably, his now swollen face aching something terrible, he thought of Rose and how terrified she’d looked. She was probably furious with him. It was almost enough to make him feel guilty, not quite though.</p>
<p>They had just walked around the corner of the corridor. Scorpius’s arm was still wrapped around Rose’s waist and they were talking quietly until Scorpius quite literally ran into the chest of none other than Thaddeus Nott.</p>
<p>“Oh, sorry mate,” Scorpius said flustered, clapping Thad on the back.</p>
<p>It was no secret that Scorpius and Thad were most certainly not mates. They’d never gotten along and in the early years of their Hogwarts’ careers were notorious for attempting to duel one another.</p>
<p>Both of their families had been involved with Voldemort and in Thad’s book that meant that he and Scorpius were supposed to be in some sort of club. Thad had never seen anything wrong with either of their father's actions and that irked Scorpius beyond belief. Over the years their anger towards one another had leveled out and they generally steered clear of each other. In fact, the last time Scorpius could remember seeing Thad was weeks ago while when doing rounds with Rose, they’d caught him trying to break into the Potions classroom. They had brought him to McGonagall and Scorpius hadn’t thought much about it since. It was obvious though that Thad had.</p>
<p>“Malfoy, nice to see you again,” said Thad. His voice was eerily calm and Scorpius reflexively tightened his grasp on Rose.</p>
<p>“You too, Thad. Now if you’ll excuse us, Rose and I were actually on our way back to our common room.” He discreetly angled himself in front of Rose and tried to step around Thad.</p>
<p>“Now that you mention it, Malfoy, I actually had something to ask you.”</p>
<p>“Ask away, Thad,” said Scorpius, feeling extremely uneasy.</p>
<p>“Does your father approve of your fucking a blood traitor? I know mine wouldn’t.”</p>
<p>It was eerily silent for a moment. It wasn’t until Rose gave a slight shudder that Scorpius registered what had just been said.</p>
<p>“Excuse me,” he scoffed in disbelief, unsure that he’d heard Nott correctly.</p>
<p>Rose’s voice was much higher than usual when she spoke. “Let’s go, Scor. We really need to get those detention slips turned in.”</p>
<p>“You know exactly what I said, Malfoy,” Nott grinned, the evil sort of glint in his eye causing Scorpius’s fist to clench instinctively. “Do you do it out of pity? I can’t imagine that she would have much to offer anyone in return with blood like that.”</p>
<p>“Scorpius, don’t listen to him. Let’s just leave,” Rose said desperately. She now had a fistful of his robes in her hand and was dragging him backward.</p>
<p>“So noble, just like your mudblood mother,” That sneered. “Do you scream like she did when Scorpius’s aunt tried to kill her?”</p>
<p>Scorpius heard his knuckles crack against Thad’s nose before he even realized what he’d done. As if in slow motion, Thad stumbled, wiped at the steady stream of blood pouring out of his left nostril, reared backward, and hit Scorpius square in the jaw. Scorpius stumbled slightly and this time there was no denying Rose pulling him backward, yelling at him to stop. But he couldn’t, not when Thad was grinning that menacing smirk at him. He ripped himself out of Rose’s grasp and before he knew what he was doing, he had Thad pushed against the wall gasping for air.</p>
<p>“Have anything else you want to say to me, Thaddeus?” Scorpius asked between gritted teeth, hardly recognizing the disgust in his own voice.</p>
<p>“Yes,” Thad snarled. “I just don’t know how you can touch something so utterly revolting,” he said, moving his head in the direction of where Rose was standing horrified. “Not even a body like that could distract from her filthy family.”</p>
<p>Once again, something in Scorpius’s chest burst, and without thinking, he’d begun pummeling his fist into Thad’s face like his life depended on it. Magic be damned; it was like he’d gone into a trance. His breaths were labored, his knuckles aching, but Thad’s words reverberated in his mind again and again. He’d never been a physical person, but his adrenaline was pumping him full of anger he hadn’t known he was capable of possessing. The faces of Rose, her mother, her brother, her father, and anyone else Thad had been referring to flashed through his mind's eye as he hit Nott for the third time.</p>
<p>Thad’s eyes were wide, his now crooked nose bleeding profusely. Suddenly, his right hand started twitching wildly and Scorpius knew that he was reaching for his wand, causing him to release Thad in a moment of panic. That was all it took for their roles to reverse; now it was Scorpius pressed up against the chilling stone wall, gasping for air as Thad’s hand gripped at his throat tightly.</p>
<p>“I didn’t want it to have to come to this, Malfoy, I really didn’t.” Scorpius couldn’t do or say anything. He was too busy gasping for air as Thad’s hand gripped his throat tighter.</p>
<p>“Her family ruined us, yet every boy at this bloody school wants to touch her arse and you’re the one who gets to.”</p>
<p>Rose’s screams were lost in the deafening ringing in his ears. He was choking, but Thad’s grip was relentless. The edges of his vision were beginning to blacken, bright white dots popping up left and right as his throat constricted. Right as he felt himself beginning to lose consciousness, Thad slackened his grip. Scorpius gasped for air, sputtering and coughing as the world around him began to come back into focus. As if in slow motion, he looked to his left where he saw Rose’s tear-stained face yelling something, her wand aimed shakily at Nott’s chest. Scorpius was about to tell her no, that it wasn’t worth it, but before he could something solid hit him in the stomach. He let out a cry of pain as he doubled over, hardly keeping his composure enough to stay standing. His head was forced upwards roughly though as Thad’s fist collided with his jaw. He was spitting blood, trying desperately to take a steady breath but failed as Thad reared backward and once again struck him, this time on the nose.</p>
<p>Scorpius slid to the floor, head lolling forward. He was coughing and sputtering and he vaguely heard Thad jeering something incomprehensible at him, but it didn’t matter, not when his world was spinning so aggressively. Scorpius rolled to his side, hacking up blood quite violently. He wanted so desperately to close his eyes if only for a moment, but something was forcing him awake. Through swollen eyes, he watched Thad shakily stand and turn around.</p>
<p>Why was he leaving, Scorpius thought. Why hadn’t he finished him off? His mind was lagging, but he realized quite suddenly that Thad was talking to someone, looming over their quaking form on the ground. Thad was reaching for his wand, but why? He was laughing, yelling at someone. The person on the ground was sobbing, her red hair covering her tear stricken face like a curtain.</p>
<p>Rose.</p>
<p>It was as if he’d been jolted awake by lightning. Right as Thad raised his wand, Scorpius found his, still tucked away in the inside pocket of his robes, and the word ‘stupefy’ was out of his mouth faster than he cared to admit. A jet of red light sent Thad flying into the wall nearest him and he slumped to the ground still twitching slightly.</p>
<p>Looking around, he surveyed the corridor. Beneath Thad was an ever-growing pool of blood; he must have hit his head when he fell. His face was coated in dried blood and Scorpius vaguely remembered the feeling of Thad’s nose cracking underneath his knuckles. Scorpius figured that he looked quite similar, if not worse. Paintings were askew: one with a gaping hole in its middle, another had fallen to the floor, the woman inside of it screaming violently. He looked to the right of him to see his own blood covering the floor from where he’d coughed it up only moments ago. Even the armor nearest him didn’t look quite right, as if it had been knocked sideways and tried to right itself but had failed.</p>
<p>This was his fault.</p>
<p>Sure, Thad had provoked him, but he’d thrown the first punch. He should have gotten a professor, reported the disgusting behavior instead of dealing with it on his own. He was the one who had beaten Thad to a pulp first. The blood was quite literally on his hands. He looked to Rose who was still trembling, tears still glistening on her cheeks. They locked eyes and he wanted to say something, anything to take the horrified look off of her face. She opened her mouth and then closed it, sighing shakily.</p>
<p>“Scorpius,” she began in a strained sort of voice. “Why would you-”</p>
<p>What would have been the rest of her sentence was cut off abruptly by the sound of several pairs of shoes hitting the ground of the corridor adjacent to them.</p>
<p>They both looked just in time to see all four heads of houses accompanied by Professor McGonagall rounding the corner, stopping to stare in shock at the scene before them. He knew it looked bad. Thad was unconscious, lying in a pool of his own blood, Rose was white as a sheet, and in a single moment of horror, he realized that somehow, his wand was still pointing in Thad’s direction. He didn’t even have it in him to try and defend himself.</p>
<p>“Mr. Malfoy,” said McGonagall, her lips pressed into an alarmingly thin line. “My office. Now.”</p>
<p>It had to have been an hour since then. He hadn’t even gotten to go to the Hospital Wing, or more importantly, check in with Rose. His body ached with the blow of a dozen punches, his throat raw and scratchy from having been nearly choked to death, and his eyes ached with the weight of wanting to sleep</p>
<p>He figured that McGonagall was with Rose, asking her what exactly had happened. And even if she was furious with him, Rose would still cover for him. He knew that. She would force McGonagall to see why he’d become so unhinged and would tell her all of the nasty things Nott had said. But Thad was going to wake up eventually, if he hadn’t already, and would be sure to paint himself as innocent. Was Scorpius going to be expelled? He was weeks away from taking his final exams; surely they would let him finish. He imagined the possibility of being sent home and his entire future seemed to crumble before him. It wasn’t as if he’d had strong career prospects, to begin with, being a Malfoy and all, but this was sure to finish him off.</p>
<p>But he’d done the right thing. He’d stood up for what was right, just like his father had taught him to. He might have gone about it entirely incorrectly, but he’d tried.</p>
<p>Scorpius’s mind was still whizzing with the possibilities of what was to come when he heard someone sweep in the room from behind him. He took in the impossibly lined face of Professor McGonagall and cringed inwardly, knowing that whatever Rose had said had hardly worked.</p>
<p>“Is Rose alright?” He asked immediately. His voice screamed in protest as he spoke, the bruises from Thad’s fingers around his throat a stark contrast to his pale skin.</p>
<p>“Yes, Miss Weasley is fine,” the older woman said rigidly.</p>
<p>“Professor, you have to understand what happened,” said Scorpius quickly as McGonagall sat down behind her large desk.</p>
<p>She sighed deeply, something he’d never heard her do before, and his heart sank. “I’ve already heard everything I need to know, Mr. Malfoy.”</p>
<p>“But, Professor-”</p>
<p>“I understand that you were the first to make physical contact with Mr. Nott.”</p>
<p>“Yes,” he protested weakly, “but-”</p>
<p>This time he burst into a fit of coughs that made his throat feel like it was on fire. The headmistress summoned him water and watched through narrowed eyes as he gulped it down.</p>
<p>“I also understand that you were the only one to have used his wand,” she continued after he’d set his cup down onto her desk.</p>
<p>“He was trying to hurt Rose and I couldn’t-”</p>
<p>“Mr. Malfoy,” she cut in sharply. “You are Head Boy and will be leaving my castle to go off into the world in a matter of weeks. While I admire your willingness to protect, you must not go around punching anyone who insults you. Though I highly disagree with Mr. Nott’s actions, I disagree with yours as well. You will both be in detention every night for the rest of your Hogwarts careers. Am I understood?” She asked sternly.</p>
<p>All he could do was nod feebly, the weight of his actions hitting him fully. His father would be furious. He’d always been taught to keep his head down; not to bring any more attention to the Malfoy name when his life at school was already hard enough.</p>
<p>“All of that aside, Mr. Malfoy,” said McGonagall, ripping him from his thoughts. “You prided your house today when you defended Miss Weasley. She was very adamant in letting me know why exactly you decided to attack Mr. Nott and it was, I dare say, very courageous indeed,” she said, and if he wasn’t mistaken, the corner of her mouth twitched slightly.</p>
<p>“Oh,” he said in surprise. “Thank you, Professor.”</p>
<p>She nodded. “Now, if you’ll go to the Hospital Wing at once, Madame Henry is awaiting your arrival. Miss Weasley is there as well. Tomorrow night you are to report to Hagrid, as you will for the rest of the year. Good night, Mr. Malfoy.”</p>
<p>He told her goodnight and sighed in relief. Detention with Hagrid wasn’t going to be terrible at all. If that’s all the punishment he was going to get then he knew that McGonagall wasn’t too upset with him. As he made his way to the Hospital Wing he thought of what he was going to say to Rose. Was he to apologize? He wasn’t sorry for defending her, only for her having to have seen him do it. He knew that he should be ashamed of himself, and a part of him was, but the larger part was still fueled with rage at Thaddeus’s words. His blood boiled as he remembered the vile things he’d said about Rose, about her body. How anyone could think like that, he didn’t know, but it disgusted him to his core.</p>
<p>His endless thoughts carried him all the way to his destination. When he pushed open the large doors to the Hospital Wing he was immediately tackled by a mess of wild red curls. He winced as he was pushed against the wall roughly, but Rose didn’t seem to care. She took his face in her hands, looking at it closely. Her blue eyes were wide and swimming with tears as she inspected every inch of him; from his bruised jaw, broken nose, and the purple marks on either side of his throat. After assessing his injuries for a few more moments she took him by surprise by pushing him square in the chest.</p>
<p>“You - are - such - a - stupid - prat,” she whispered aggressively, punctuating each word by jabbing her finger into his chest. Madame Henry hadn’t come bustling over and he figured that they hadn’t been heard. He was grateful, for sorting things out with Rose was far more important than fixing a broken nose.</p>
<p>Once she’d decided that she’d done him enough damage she surprised him again by wrapping her arms around his middle. He felt her tears begin to soak his shirt and he led her over to a chair against the wall.</p>
<p>“I was so scared,” she hiccuped, tracing a particularly nasty bruise forming on his left cheekbone. He sighed, not quite knowing what to say.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry that you had to see that,” he said finally, voice still horribly scratchy. He could practically feel Nott’s hands clamping around his throat with every word he spoke.</p>
<p>“You shouldn’t have attacked him. You should have walked away,” she said fiercely, continuing to trace her finger over his face.</p>
<p>“The things he was saying about you-” he said in a pained voice, trailing off once her finger touched a particularly tender spot on the bridge of his nose.</p>
<p>“Are all things I’ve heard before,” she finished for him.</p>
<p>“But that’s the thing!” he exclaimed. “You shouldn’t have to hear any of it.”</p>
<p>“Just like you shouldn’t have to hear things about your father,” she countered, taking his hand in hers and leading him into one of the curtained-off cots in the farthest left corner.</p>
<p>“There’s a difference, Rose. My father did terrible things; it makes sense for me to hear about them.”</p>
<p>“We’re different people from our parents, Scorpius. You of all people ought to know that.” He nodded his head shakily and when he didn’t speak, she went on. “I appreciate your trying to defend me, but it can’t be like that. People can’t get hurt, Scor, that’s not you.”</p>
<p>“I know that,” he said quietly, embarrassed to feel his aching throat constrict. “I just can’t hear things like that, Rose. Not about you, not about anyone. It’s disgusting.”</p>
<p>She surprised him by nodding mutely and pressing her face into his side. He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer, and pressed a kiss into her curls. They sat like that for a while; the moon casting white light into the dark Hospital Wing. He noticed at some point that Rose’s shoulders had begun to shake, but it was all he could do to not cry himself. He pulled her closer to him.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry that today happened,” he said softly after her crying had subsided.</p>
<p>She exhaled shakily and leaned away from him, looking up with a small smile. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” he nodded. “Me too.”</p>
<p>“I really thought that he was going to kill you,” she said quietly, her shoulders tensing.</p>
<p>If he was being honest, the thought had crossed his mind as well. He wanted to tell her that he’d never been so scared in his life. But, sensing that she was becoming upset again, he shrugged instead and forced himself to laugh.</p>
<p>“Nah, I was fine. Just needed to make him think he was winning.”</p>
<p>She glared at him. “That’s not funny.”</p>
<p>“I know,” he said with a sigh. “But it’s over now.”</p>
<p>They both jumped as Madame Henry tore around the corner, scolding them both for not alerting her that Scorpius had arrived. She poked him and prodded him, finally telling him that he was healed. She ordered him to stay the night and rest and her jaw dropped as Rose simply said no, that she wouldn’t be going back to her common room. Not quite knowing what to say, the older woman left, but not before demanding that they get to sleep immediately.</p>
<p>Rose crawled onto the small cot, wrapping around Scorpius like a vine as they both let the heaviness of the evening hit them.</p>
<p>“My father is going to flip his shit when he hears about this,” Scorpius said softly.</p>
<p>This caused Rose to giggle, the sound shaking her and Scorpius’s intertwined forms. “Just think of what my mum's going to do.”</p>
<p>“I’d worry more about your dad if I were you,” he mused.</p>
<p>“Oh God,” she snorted. “He’ll probably come up here and finish Nott himself. And when he hears that you already tried that, he’ll give you permission to marry me immediately.”</p>
<p>As soon as she said it, she let out a tiny gasp as if she hadn’t meant to speak at all. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to imply-”</p>
<p>“I promise that I’m not going to need permission to do that.”</p>
<p>He’d said it so quickly, he hadn’t really even thought about it. They were both 18, much too young to be even contemplating anything like marriage, but when he thought about it, as he often did, it only made sense. He loved Rose incomprehensibly. The fiery girl with the fiery hair, who didn’t let what others thought of her tear her down, who didn’t hate him even after he most definitely deserved it, who knew exactly what to say and how to say it. He loved her so damned much it was almost too much to clearly comprehend. So, after they were far past the point of drowsiness, he told her how wonderful she was. He said it again and again, a mantra until they had both fallen asleep.</p>
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